Always working hard, rarely if ever taking a play off. A player that goes 100 MPH at all times, and consistently competing fast. A player every team seemingly needs.

"Every day in practice, every game, you know what you're going to get out of that guy," said head coach Saul Perez. "Everybody else, you might have questions, some concerns. That guy? You get five of those guys on your team, you're going to win."

An undersized power forward, Dennis plays big as a hustle player and second-chance scorer. Perez said the senior's role has expanded and, despite rarely if ever having plays ran for him, has been a leading scorer for the Knights in recent games. Such points will come in the form of offensive putbacks and fast-break buckets.

"Every day that he wakes up, it's go, go, go," Perez said, before pointing to Dennis' defensive intangibles. "He's the kind of guy that's had the opportunity to guard the opponents biggest player, the opponents smallest player. You just stick him anywhere you want and the job's going to get done."

Dennis said since he's started playing basketball, scoring has been a middle-tier priority, not necessarily at the top of his list.

"My role is to get rebounds and just help us as much as I can," he said. "Pick up the pace on defense, offense. Anything I can do."

Such play has allowed him to be a leader on the Knights team, more specifically one by example.

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"Always encouraging us to do things right," said guard Isaac Merry when talking of his teammate. "That word describes him: Positivity. Never anything negative."

At 6-6 on the year, the Knights hope to be a possible darkhorse during the second half of the season. The team has had some encouraging moments and have shown competitive play against some of the top teams in state, such as a 65-61 home defeat to Hobbs.

The team also has some more size this year. Dennis' hustling mentality notwithstanding, forward Daemund McCants has top-tier player potential and the team hopes to return post Q Scarbrough to proper eligibility for the season's second half. Isaiah Polansky is another big body who played varsity football for the Knights this past fall.

"We've always felt that way," Perez said of being a possible darkhorse in district play. "This year it's taking us a little longer to put those pieces together to fill that puzzle. We have the pieces. We know that and it's no secret. It's taking us longer to fit it together. A big reason for that is not enough varsity experience. But the pieces are there."

Teddy Feinberg can be reached at (575) 541-5455. Follow him on Twitter @TeddyFeinberg